Oregon militant vows to die before being arrested as feds move to end occupation

Tension increased around the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon on Tuesday night as federal authorities moved to end the seizure of the facility by an armed militant group led by Cliven Bundy’s son Ammon.

“There are things being done,” Harvey County Sheriff Ward told the Oregonian. “It’s not visible to the public.”

Ward said that the Federal Bureau of Investigation was working with other agencies to stop the occupation, which started this past Saturday. Officials were already planning to cut power to the building in response to Bundy’s group.

Members of the militia Oath Keepers group released a statement calling on participants to take all children out of the area.

“This is not a family event,” the statement read. “The only people there should be the armed men who are willing to die there with Ammon Bundy and his brothers and a couple of embedded reporters.”

One of the militants, identified as 55-year-old LaVoy Finicum told MSNBC that he believed that warrants had been issued for not only himself, but Ammon Bundy and his brother Ryan. Finicum, who was interviewed with a rifle protuding from his tarp, also said that he would prefer death to being arrested.

“I have been raised in the country all my life,” he said. “I love dearly to feel the wind on my face. To see the sun rise, to see the moon. I have no intention of spending any of my days in a concrete box.”

About the Author

Arturo R. García is the managing editor at Racialicious.com. He is based in San Diego, California and has written for both print and broadcast media, including contributions to GlobalComment.com, The Root and Comment Is Free. Follow him on Twitter at @ABoyNamedArt